Saturday, April 10, 2010

MICF 2010: I Heart Frankston: The Musical

Despite strong performances, this 'Southside Story’ about a bayside suburb whose mayor has banned musical theatre productions in order to address the scourge of roaming music-theatre gangs, fails to sustain its charm over a one-hour running time.

After a dramatic opening, which successfully transforms the intimate confines of the Butterfly Club into a war zone, we’re quickly introduced to Gerard and Adrian, two gay-acting straight boys, one of whom is still carrying a torch for his former girlfriend, the musical-hating mayor, Ms Craig. From this point the narrative - expanded from an original, award-winning 10 minute production - quickly becomes laboured, and a series of jokes involving Dermot Brereton, tracksuits and poisoned cask wine fail to slow its descent into incoherence.

Despite some clever pastiches of existing songs (such as the rapped break-up song ‘Franga Woman’, and a reworked version of Oklahoma’s ‘The Farmer and the Cowman’ which posits that ‘the copper and the druggie should be friends’) this laboured musical is only sporadically entertaining.


Two and a half stars

I Heart Frankston: The Musical

Gerard Lane, Adrian Portell and Laura Burzacott
The Butterfly Club until April 18

Thu-Sat 7pm, Sun 6pm
$20 - $25

This review originally appeared in The Age on Saturday April 10, where half a star was ommitted from the rating due to a sub-editing error.

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